Getting There
by The Last Legend
Summary: All Lily and James stories are pretty much the same, huh? We all know they hate each other at first and die at the end. But they AREN'T all the same! It's getting from the beginning to the end that's important. And that's why we read them.
1. Chapter 1: And So It Begins

Lily smiled and slipped her car keys into the pocket of her jeans. It wasn't a particularly _nice_ car, just a beat up jeep with a nice speaker system. But she loved it anyway. Her parallel parking wasn't too good either. She would have to have her father help her with that later. Grinning, she trained her eyes on the barely noticeable pub, situated between an oversized department store and one of those new cafés that were springing up all over London.

Lily was a pretty girl, sixteen, tall and thin with a striking appearance that would make (and did make) most guys drool. Her long red hair fell midway down her back. Though, despite all the comments she got for her hair (and the 30 minutes it took to blow-dry it) her eyes were still her favorite feature. Addie always said they reminded her of some old emerald earrings her grandmother had given her. Those earrings had later become Lily's since Addie could never wear them (Addie was the unfortunate child of an entirely pureblood family, which was constantly at odds with Addie and her muggle-loving grandmother).

She quietly made her way into the crowded pub. There was less than an inch between her and the next person (a twisted old woman with a hump and frizzy gray hair), having personal space seemed to be out of the question. Looking over the crowd, Lily noticed that many seemed to be in equally awkward situations. The only reason the pub was ever crowded was because the owners refused to make the building any bigger. There was a simple charm that would allow them to all fit comfortably, but the owners probably wanted the place to feel crowded. Something about making it seem famous and all. _Being able to appariate would be rather helpful right about now_, she thought with a sigh

Standing outside the Leaky Cauldron twenty minutes later, Lily pulled out her wand and tapped the bricks above the trashcans. Beaming like an idiot, she watched as the bricks moved to offer her the entrance to the world famous Diagon Alley. Standing here only five years ago she had felt nervous and slightly sick. A stranger in the world of wizards, she hadn't had a clue what any of the stuff around her was, but now… Well, she recognized not only the strange items around her, but a few faces as well. Nonetheless, walking into Diagon Alley always excited her. Here she wasn't just Lily Evans. Here she was a student at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, a prefect with a spotless record, the most wanted and popular girl in school, and the brightest female student of her year. No wonder she never went home for the holidays.

She pulled an extremely worn piece of parchment out of her pocket. Like most things in her life, this parchment was more than it seemed. In second year she had suddenly been seized with the inspiration to make a superior form of passing notes. She had spent the greater part of her second year Christmas Break researching a way for other people's writing to appear on her parchment. The final result was the thing she now had in her hand. Pulling out an "Ever Inked Quill" (never dip again!) and pressing the paper up against a wall to write, _Now if I were a blond psycho meeting a friend, where would I wait?_

Almost instantly came the reply, _How about in a trashcan?_

Lily smiled, _I refuse to look in trashcans for you, Addie._

_Then you're lucky I'm a sociopath, Lily._

_What's the difference?_

_Sociopath has more letters, darling, and we prefer ice cream to rotten banana peels._

Lily smiled and made her way over to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor. The place had been around for quite a while now and was quickly becoming a Diagon Alley favorite. Sitting at a patio table in the shade by the door, with a chocolate ice cream in one hand and a half-eaten strawberry in the other, was Addie.

Addie was about Lily's height with blond hair that waved and curled elegantly, ending at her shoulder blades. She had soft blue eyes always framed by expertly applied makeup. Her lips were usually parted in an amiable grin revealing sparking, even, white teeth. Everything about her appearance was carefully done, from her nails to her hair, even her clothing was painstakingly cared for. Yet, somehow, all together, she gave off a feeling of carefree beauty, as if she could walk through a mudslide and come out looking like she belonged on the cover of a magazine. She was a beauty that came from a long line of beauties. In Addie's family, appearances were everything and how their daughter presented herself was of the utmost importance, which explained Addie's primped appearance that really didn't suit her personality.

In all actuality, left to her own devices, Addie wouldn't even wear makeup. Or brush her hair for that matter. Not that she didn't want to look good. Addie just cared more about other things. Like her friends. She loved to party and have a good time. To Addie, just about everything came second to having a good time. She could be inconsiderate and blunt, but she was always there when she was needed, which was why Lily liked her so much.

"You're lucky these don't ever melt, Evans, or you wouldn't have an ice cream." Addie said teasingly as she handed the chocolate to her friend.

"You're too kind."

"I figured it would save us time" At the questioning look Lily sent her, Addie continued, "We do have some serious shopping to do"

"Ah," they had been planning this for quite some time now, an entire weekend of uninterrupted shopping at Diagon Alley. They were even renting a room at the Leaky Cauldron. Lily had been looking forward to it all summer.

Sure, she loved her parents but she needed to get away from her sister. Petunia hadn't spoken to her since Lily had received her letter from Hogwarts. She even called her a freak behind her back. Her parents tried to help, but no matter what they did, the relationship between the two sisters was forever handicapped. So with her parents in Morocco for the past two weeks, the silence had become suffocating. That is to say, when Petunia wasn't on the phone with her latest love interest, _Vernon_. Lily had never met him, but from the way Petunia giggled like a hyena when she talked to him, she wasn't sure she wanted to. Anyone that could make her sister swoon wasn't someone Lily would want to spend time getting to know.

The girls made their way back toward the pub. Lily hadn't understood why Addie had wanted to meet inside Diagon Alley until she had seen the crowd in the Leaky Cauldron. Even if they had known where each other was, they wouldn't have been able to make their way toward each other through that crowd. But now with the promise of a fun filled weekend in Diagon Ally ahead of her, not even the nauseatingly close crowd in the Leaky Cauldron could dampen her spirits.

"I'm bored,"

James sighed and looked at Sirius from the corner of his eyes. They were lounging about at a table in front of one of the small restaurants in Diagon Alley. Sirius had his chair tilted back on two legs with his feet propped up on the table. "You're _always_ bored."

"It's not my fault there's nothing fun to do."

"It's not the world's job to entertain you, Padfoot."

"Really?" Sirius gave him a fake surprised expression that made James laugh. They had spent most of the day here, watching people go past, trying to guess why they were here ("Now, _she_ is here buying something for her gran." "How can you tell?" "There is no way her butt is big enough for those panties.")

Sirius was drop dead gorgeous. Girls always said he reminded them of a puppy. His hair fell elegantly into his eyes. If it was possible for hair to possess grace then Sirius's certainly did. He was tall and muscular. But more than his appearance, it was his charm that made him popular. He could sweet talk just about anyone, even the teachers. Though he often acted stupid and innocent, James knew he was just the opposite. Sirius was a joker and had a great sense of humor but was fiercely loyal. He, like James, excelled at every class without ever trying. The information just seemed to stick in his head.

James was a good-looking guy, tall and thin with wiry muscle that came from spending countless hours playing quidditch. He had warm hazel eyes and messy black hair that refused to flatten. James's theory was that if his hair insisted on being unruly, he might as well help it achieve its life long goal. Of course when he had shared this idea with Sirius, the other boy had made a comment about hair having life long goals.

He and Sirius had known each other too long for their own good, though neither of them seemed to notice. They were constantly in trouble, whether for blowing up the dorms or breaking some girl's heart. They were the original Marauders, James, Sirius, and Remus, Hogwarts' Heartthrobs. Peter was considered a Marauder too, but without the usual perks. Few girls were after shy Peter. They were far more interested in the Charming James Potter, the Sexy Sirius Black, or the Gentlemanly Remus Lupin.

The Marauders had every girl at Hogwarts wrapped around their finger. Every girl, except for the one, that in James's opinion, mattered. Lily Evans, James' object of interest since third year. Sadly, the two had a conflict of interest. Lily was the rule-abiding type who'd never gotten in trouble in her life. James was a prankster with his own laminated detention slip. Lily was also the only girl capable of making James lose his head. He would never dream of continuously asking a girl out, yet whenever Lily came close to him, his mouth just started moving and he had no control over what came out. He never felt quite so together when he was around her. He had trained himself against his clumsiness all his life, but when Lily was around, things just seemed to jump out and trip him. James honestly didn't know what it was about the girl that made him lose his head, but he was sure he liked it.

"Alright, Prongs?" Sirius's voice brought James crashing back to reality. A reality in which Lily Evans was an unreachable goal.

"You could call it that," James said sulking back into his chair.

"Ah, troubles of the feminine kind!" Sirius said jubilantly, "Well, wait until you hear the plans I have in store for you this year!"

James groaned. He loved Sirius like his own brother, but his plans often consisted of trips to the hospital wing for Peter.

"This year, Evans won't refuse!" Sirius had a comical triumphant look on his face as he said this.

"That's what you said last year, and the year before…" James smiled, he hadn't realized how fond Sirius was of that phrase.

"Hey! Who's the brains here?"

"Remus?"

"Well, after him." Sirius made a face; it was hard to beat Remus when it came to academics. "Speak of the devil! There's old Moony now!"

Sure enough the third Marauder stood just a little ways off from them. He hadn't noticed them yet, but could practically feel the presence of his two friends. They had been the best of friends to him. They had endured a lot together, everything from the first day of school to finding out he was a werewolf. Lupin hadn't honestly thought they would stick with him after that, but was surprised to find they didn't care. In fact they thought of an amazing way to help him out. They had sacrificed countless nights reading by candlelight under James's invisibility cloak. Then in Fifth year they had revealed what they had been researching all that time.

They were Animagi. Illegal Animagi, but Animagi nonetheless. "No one should endure that alone, especially not you Moony," James had said it that first night. Now they would accompany him every full moon, in animal form of course, and keep him company.

That was when the Marauders had really become what they were. Yeah, they had existed before, but now they had a purpose. That and a serious knowledge of Hogwarts and the surrounding area.

"Oy! Moony! Over here!" Remus spun and searched the crowd for the source of the voice. Only the Marauders called him Moony. There they were, sitting without a care in the world by a café. Grinning Lupin moved towards them. It had been a long summer without his friends.


	2. Chapter 2: Summer Stories

Lily groaned and rolled over. Through sleep blurred vision, she noticed Addie bustling around the room.

"Whatcha doin, Ads?" She croaked rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"Packing. I've gotta get back to Bamarre. Flynn just sent me a letter wondering where I was. I had totally forgotten that I'm supposed to go back early…" She rambled on as she sifted through a pile of clothes.

Lily just stared at her groggily. She hadn't taken in a word of what Addie had just said. Lily was normally a morning person, but this was going too far, after all it _was_ summer.

She rolled over, "Addie, it's 5:30." Lily peered at the clock closely, something must be wrong and it wasn't telling time right. Who the hell sets off at 5:30 in the morning? Apparently, Addie did.

They were in Lily's room, a pale blue corner of the house with a window seat and assortment of stuffed animals. After their shopping weekend, Addie, reluctant to go home, had suggested they just crash at Lily's for the rest of the summer. Lily knew her parents would be delighted to see Addie again ("You never bring your wizarding friends around enough") and found that she didn't really care what Petunia thought.

Addie rarely spent her summers at home. She was always off rock climbing on the coast, or surfing in Australia, or, if all else failed, bunking at someone's house. Lily was often dragged off on these adventures (funded unwittingly by Addie's parents, of course). Everyone loved being with her, and so put up with the seemingly spontaneous trips. She had even called Lily at 3:00 in the morning once asking if she wanted to go Rio. The Pack were some of the few people that knew why Addie never went home. Her family hated her, and was always yelling at her, telling her how disappointed they were. Lily didn't know how she put up with it.

Though Lily supposed she had a similar situation. Thinking of her sister in the other room, she could relate to why Addie never wanted to go back. If it weren't for her parents, Lily wouldn't bother staying in touch with her sister at all. But every time Lily saw her mother with tears in her eyes she knew she couldn't abandon her family. It tore her mother up to see her girls acting the way they did. As excited as her parents were that Lily was a witch, they couldn't just abandon Petunia. Lily felt bad that she stole so much of her parents' affections. But if Petunia was jealous or hurt, she didn't show it. That was Petunia for you, too wrapped up in her hatred of them all to tell them how she felt.

"Later Lils! I'll see you… sometime." Addie grinned mischievously.

"Wait, whadya mean, sometime?" Lily hadn't missed the pause that told her her friend had purposely baited her.

"For me to know my dearest Lillian. And that, is your Point to Ponder for the day." She winked and with a crack, she and all her stuff disappeared.

Lily groaned, "Addie and her 'Points to Ponder'…" Addie was positively obsessed with the idea that giving someone something hard to think about was a sufficient way to wake them up.

Lily sighed and flopped out of bed to go get dressed. Damn Addie for getting her up. Once she was awake she couldn't go back to sleep for a while. She dug through her bureau to find some suitable clothing for lounging around in and dragged a shirt triumphantly from the chaos inside it. She pulled the oversized green flannel shirt over her head. It probably wasn't hers, but it was warm and wasn't dirty (she hadn't done laundry since Addie's arrival).

A familiar smell greeted her as she slipped it over her head. It was Flynn's shirt. Flynn, ex-boyfriend Flynn, Addie's practically-brother Flynn, Flynn, who was always graceful, and kind, and polite, and upright, and law abiding Flynn. Lily groaned. He hadn't worn the shirt in almost 3 months and yet it still managed to smell just like him, just like sandalwood. He never wore that cheap cologne stuff other guys wore. No, he smelled fabulous on his own. Stupid Flynn. He hadn't wanted to hurt her feelings. But that was Flynn. He had girls drooling over him and didn't even know. She decided she wouldn't let it get to her. She would wear the shirt anyway.

It turned out to be a cloudy day. The sky threatened to rain but never quite got there. It was the sort of day Lily just spent sitting around the house. She curled up on an armchair with a book, wrapped in an old comforter of hers. Mickey Mouse, back from the days when Petunia and her had shared a room. She didn't know why they had shared a room; there was plenty of space in the house. She supposed it was so they didn't go running into their parents' room every time they had a nightmare, though it happened anyway.

If Addie had stayed, they would have broken out the old twister game they had. But as it was, the house was quiet and lazy. Lily's mom was in the kitchen cooking a feast for God knows what (the family _isn't _that big mom!), her father was in the basement fixing Lily's desk, and Petunia… had disappeared. Probably out with that prick Vernon.

August the 25th. 6 days till she went back to Hogwarts. She had already completed all her shopping at Diagon Alley, and didn't really feel like packing already. Addie's departure had left her sort of in a daze. Addie was always doing that, arriving with a blur and whirl of color, then leaving them all dizzy and slightly disoriented. With Addie, life was always fun, a constant party. She always seemed so happy when she got the chance to just be alone and hang out with The Pack.

The thought of the Pack brought back happy memories. Addie, Lily, Tiffany, Vivian, Adrian, Flynn, Andromeda, and Contessa. All of them happy and hyper. They always gave Lily the feeling that she was the only sensible one in the group. Tiffany blamed it on the fact that she was British.

The whole thing had started when Addie had befriended the werewolves at Bamarre (the American Wizarding School). Tiffany, Vivian, Adrian, Flynn, and Contessa were the makeshift pack at Bamarre. They quickly nicknamed her the "Pack Pet". But before long she had become the unofficial leader. Lily, upon visiting Bamarre during her first year Christmas break, became another pack favorite. She started visiting more and more frequently, over weekends, and during all the breaks. She soon became just as well known at Bamarre as she was at Hogwarts. The Pack accepted her as a full-fledged member and they formed their "family".

Over the years the pack had changed little. Contessa had graduated to become a healer, though she still stayed in touch. Then they found Andromeda.

Andromeda had transferred from Durmstrang to Bamarre during fourth year. Feeling a little alienated from the rest of the clique obsessed school she had retreated into her studies, utterly miserable. During one of her shorter visits, Lily was the first to offer friendship. To tell the truth, Andromeda reminded her of a younger Contessa. So she gave her a way into The Pack through her. Andy, as she came to be known, told them what they looked like to outsiders. They were the envy of the school, and had no idea. They knew people thought they were funny, but what Andy had told them made them sound like people worshipped them. It bothered Lily, and she wasn't sure why. At the beginning of the summer it had finally sunk in. What Andy had said… made them sound a lot like the Marauders.

That Lily couldn't tolerate. But the more she analyzed it, the more it made sense. The Pack was just a toned down version of the Marauders. They didn't follow the rules, girls worshipped Flynn and Adrian, and boys drooled over the "Pack Girls". Sure they didn't walk down the corridors cursing people just because they breathed, but they played pranks, sometimes cruel ones on people who definitely didn't deserve to be pranked.

And now Lily was dreading the upcoming year. She didn't know if she would be able to face James Potter. All those times she had yelled at him never realizing how alike they were. She would be lucky if she could look him in the eye, much less tell him off. But she was a prefect, how would she keep order if she felt guilty? She couldn't rely on Remus, he was friends with them. And the prefects from other houses wouldn't see what goes on in the common room. Plus the younger prefects would be too scared of the legendary James Potter and Sirius Black to do anything about it. Not that the Marauders would listen anyway.

Lily came back out of her thoughts to realize she had been reading the same line over and over again and still had no idea what it said. Why couldn't she ever read anything that took no thought to process?

A considerable distance away, James Potter woke to the sound of Sirius' snoring. Moaning he rolled over and pulled the pillow over his head. No luck. If anybody needed an anti-snoring spell, it was Sirius. James knew he should have been used to it by then, since Sirius had been living with them for the whole summer.

It had just happened, all of the sudden, out of the blue. The door bell rang in the middle of the night, and there was Sirius, with all his stuff, "Can I stay for a while, mate?" So Sirius had moved in. As it turned out, Sirius had run away after a particularly bad fight between him and his folks. They were always on his case about him not being a pure blood maniac. James could see why he left. Sirius's family was about as evil as it got. Sirius happened to be the oddball. James didn't know by what genetic fluke it happened, but it had happened. Sirius was the only one that didn't look down on other wizards because of their blood. Maybe it was because he had been exposed to James at a young age. They had known each other for as long as each could remember.

James heaved a pillow at the lumpy form in the next bed over. Sirius woke with a start. "Wha- Huh?"

James rolled over and went back to sleep, deciding he didn't have enough energy to tell Sirius to stop snoring.

"Oi! James! Wake up! C'mon, don't make me sing to you mate." James closed his eyes tightly and tried to block out the sound of Sirius' voice. He had been having a good dream, involving a certain red-haired someone. But as the window shattering awfulness of Sirius' singing reached his ears, he decided it wasn't worth it.

"Why the hell are you getting me up this early?" He inquired irritably as he dressed hastily into his robes.

"Because, mate, it's the last day of summer vacation and your mum says, if we aren't downstairs and ready to go shopping in three minutes she's gonna ring our necks." James just stared at him blankly. That had been a rather long and complicated sentence, and it being morning, James was in no fit state to comprehend it. Sirius sighed, "Just get going, Prongs!"

Two and a half minutes later, a very disgruntled James, and a far to peppy Sirius were in the kitchen scarfing down toast. Mrs. Potter was screeching at James to hurry up. She had decided to go shopping for school supplies today. At James's protests that he didn't need anything new, she had simply pointed to his robes, which were a good two inches above his sneakers. In James's opinion, he really hadn't needed anything new. He was completely stocked up on all the newest supplies in pranking. His candy stock was guaranteed to never run out. He had spent countless time with Sirius at Diagon Alley, but had never bothered to set foot in Madame Malkins.

Which is why James found himself standing on a stool feeling slightly exposed in just his boxers as he was fitted for new robes. The lady was short and pudgy, with frizzy gray hair that curled out in all directions.

"Cold, Dear?" Her gray eyes sparkled with laughter. Yes, James was cold. Not just cold, Cold, capital c. He was shivering from head to toe, and all his hair was standing on end. He, personally, didn't find it very funny. Sirius, on the other hand, was paralyzed with laughter on a chair in the corner. It was one of Sirius's favorite activities to laugh at James. Despite his demeanor, James was really quite awkward. He didn't like to be laughed at, or rejected. But then again, nobody did.

Everyone deals with such things in their own way. Some hid and hoped that nobody would point them out. And others, like James, put themselves directly in public eye, and gave themselves a name that no one would laugh at.

Only one person made him feel insecure. And that one person just happened to walk in on James as his attendant left him, shivering on a stool. Almost immediately, Lily's face went as red as her hair.


	3. Chapter 3: Can't Stick to The Plan

Lily walked into Madame Malkin's to a less than welcome sight. There was James Potter, looking distinctly uncomfortable standing on a stool in just his Snowboarding Penguin boxers. Lily couldn't help but notice he had nicely defined muscles, and even a six-pack. She mentally smacked herself for thinking of him in that way, this was after all, James Potter. But still, he did look very attractive. Argh! There she went again!

"Er, hello Evans." He said, turning slightly pink and lowering his gaze from her eyes. Lily scowled. Why did he have to call her that? She hated it when people called her by her last name. It took her back to second grade when kids would tease her saying, 'Evans? Isn't that a guy's name?'

"What are you doing here Potter?" She put on her coldest voice. She dearly regretted coming here now. Sure she needed new robes (while packing her ink had spilled all over the ones from last year), but why did she have to come here now, while _Potter_ was here.

"Being utterly humiliated it would seem." Was he blushing? He had definitely turned pink, but that was out of character for him. Then there was the fact that he hadn't hit on her at all while she had been here. Even though they had only been standing there for a few seconds, it must have been some sort of record. Normally he greeted her by asking her out. She wondered when the sudden change in attitude had occurred.

_Okay James, it's not as bad as it seems. The girl you've loved since 3rd year just walked in on you while you're half naked… Great, how could this possibly get any worse_? He looked around the room quickly, scanning for Sirius, but the other boy had disappeared. Why would Sirius leave now? Normally he would jump at the chance to see him humiliated in public.

Now all he had to do was stick to the plan. Just maybe, if he didn't say anything perverted or mean he could escape this unscathed.

"Need some help dear?" a worker asked Lily.

Lily turned and smiled at her. James wondered if she had any idea the affect that smile had on him. "Yes, I need some new school robes"

"Hogwarts?" She asked. Lily nodded "Well then, just step up on the stool next to this young man and we'll get your measurements." Lily smiled again and stepped up next to James.

Maybe if he didn't open his mouth, if he didn't try to start a conversation, if he didn't try to dazzle her, he would be all right. This was his year to show her he was mature, this was his chance to prove he was better than he acted, he could do this…

"Nice boxers, Potter." Damn it! He had been doing so well! Why did she have to go and talk to him? All he wanted was for her to ignore him and let him concentrate on being normal. Most of the time she would give anything to pretend he wasn't there and she couldn't even do _that_ now!

He needed to respond, she would expect him to. Okay, nothing perverted, just a simple thank you. Look her in the eyes, try not to pass out, don't run you hand through you hair. So many rules. Was being normal always this complicated? Smile, don't smirk or grin. He took a deep breath and, "Enjoying the view, eh Evans?" DAMN IT! He definitely had no control over what came out of his mouth!

She glared at him and he suddenly found his feet very interesting. God, he couldn't even do this right. Remus was right, he really didn't have any self-control. It wasn't his fault she was so damn pretty. He didn't want to like her. She did things to him that no normal person could ever do. Because of her, the social structure he had built around himself was threatening collapse. He, James Potter, couldn't get a girl to go out with him. She was the girl of his dreams: smart, witty, social, fun. The only problem was that she was never any of these things around him. She was always ticked off.

James rushed out the moment he paid. "Idiot, idiot, idiot!" He whacked his forehead with the heel of his hand.

"Who's an idiot?" He whirled around to be greeted by the familiar wicked grin of Sirius.

"I am. Couldn't you tell? I hit on Lily again."

Sirius sighed and slung his arm around his friend, "What happened to 'the plan'? I thought you weren't going to do that anymore. You know, make her think your head had shrunk a little"

"Yeah, I know, but I just opened my mouth and out it came."

"Why'd you say anything at all?"

"Because she said something first, and it would be rude to- wait, where were you during all this?" James looked at Sirius out of the corner of his eye.

His friend just gave him one of his trademark grins and ruffled James's hair, "I saw a rather fashionable brunette…"

"You snogged a complete stranger?" James may have had a reputation as a player, but he really hadn't had many girlfriends and he definitely didn't date girls just for a good snog, unlike a certain friend of his. Girls had just made up stories of love and tragedy, and no one believed him when he told them it wasn't true. In fact, he hadn't had a girlfriend since 3rd year, which oddly enough, was when Lily had become the only girl he ever looked twice at.

"Now, Prongs, if I had gone off for a good snog, I wouldn't be here would I? I would still be with the brunette. We just messed around a little."

James made a face, "You sicken me."


	4. Chapter 4: Forward Motion

Lily had become distinctly bored with the Prefects meeting. The new Heads were arrogant and more concerned with their positions than with the well being of the school. They had been rambling on about how the prefects needed to show them the proper respect and abide by the school rules; they were role models for other students, yadda, yadda, yadda. She had sat on the edge of her seat last year, a new prefect, wanting to show them she could handle it. Looking around, she could easily spot the new prefects. They were all nervous, listening intently. Poor kids… They had no idea what a drag being a prefect really was.

Remus was sitting next to her, doodling on a piece of paper. Seeing her gaze he quickly scribbled, _Wanna sit with us later? _Of all the Marauders, Remus was the only one she was on friendly terms with. Well, Peter too, but he never talked enough to call it "friendly" terms. Remus was a genuinely nice guy. He looked at her intently and she shook her head no. Sitting with Remus would mean sitting with James, and that she wouldn't do willingly. He gave her a nod to show that he understood and went back to doodling. Lily looked out the window. Who _would _she sit with? She had spent so much time at Bamarre with the Pack that she had made very few good friends here, in fact, few friends at all, and none she would call close. The people she was on good terms with would probably all sit together, and that was enough to take up a whole compartment easily.

The Prefects meeting adjourned and Lily moved to get her stuff. Remus lightly grabbed her arm. She looked up at him and he said, "Let me get that for you."

She smiled. His reputation as a gentleman preceded him. "Thank-you Remus."

"Well, you know, someone has to give the Marauders a good name." He grinned. Lily found herself wondering if all the Marauders could grin like that. For some reason she couldn't see Peter grinning. It seemed all he could muster up was a shy smile, though most of the time he just turned red when you talked to him.

"You don't exactly seem to fit with them," she said as they headed out into the hall amidst strange looks from some of the other Prefects. It was commonly known that Lily made a point to not associate with the Marauders, so why was she talking civilly with one of them?

"Well if it weren't for me, Peter would have flunked everything, James's head would have exploded and Sirius would have married his reflection." Lily laughed. She didn't doubt that that's what would have happened.

"Yeah, but what's in it for you?" She couldn't think of a single thing that would make hanging out with the Marauders bearable.

Remus' face suddenly turned very somber and he looked at her intently as if he were willing her to believe him, "They aren't as bad as you seem to think. James really does like-"

Lily groaned, "Now he's using you to get to me too? And I thought he could sink no lower…" But she stopped at the look on his face. He had suddenly turned very sad.

"You just don't get it. James hasn't asked for any of our help. He's a good guy."

She was slightly taken aback by the sudden change in mood between them, but then she narrowed her eyes and said, "Potter can rot in Hell for all I care."

"You can't mean that."

"What if I do?"

He shook his head sadly, "Then you aren't quite who I thought you were."

They continued on in silence. Remus peered into each compartment, looking for both his friends and Lily's. Near the back of the train they found Lily's friends crowded into a compartment. They invited her to join them, but she declined, not wanting to sit on the floor. Remus raised an eyebrow at her.

"Can I take you up on that offer earlier?" She mumbled toward the ground.

Remus smiled. He could see how James found Lily cute. He didn't like her that way, but she was very attractive when she was embarrassed, "Sure. The door is always open on an offer made by a Marauder!"

She looked up and brushed some of her hair behind her ear. They set off in search of James, Sirius, and Peter. Three compartments down, they found the Marauders. Sirius was snogging a girl Remus had never met, and James and Peter were on the other side of the compartment looking distinctly ill. When James saw Remus he jumped up, apparently willing for any excuse to escape the couple. Then he saw Lily. He paled and gave Remus a look that distinctly said _how could you?_

Remus sighed. James was so in love with Lily he couldn't even bear to be in the same room as her. Remus had known that by bringing Lily with him he had put James at risk to mortally embarrass himself. Yet every so often James needed to be reminded that not everyone adored him.

"Hello Potter"

James turned slightly green but managed to breathe, "Hello Evans"

Well so much for good starting conversation. Sirius and the girl tumbled to the floor. "Let's leave and give the happy couple some privacy, shall we?"

As they walked to the end of the train, which would probably be the only place with empty compartments, James pulled Remus to the side.

"Why is Lily with us?"

"Her friends' compartment was full."

"You know I won't last 3 minutes with her!"

"You would have me abandon her? That would be out of character."

James ran his hand through his hair. Remus groaned inwardly. Lily hated it when he did that. "Yeah, I know. Just turned me into a frog or something if I get too obnoxious."

Remus grinned, willingness to change, the first step to becoming a better person and winning Lily's heart. "Deal."

"So what do I do? I mean so far, trying to be normal has kind of backfired."

"I think being normal is a little too much to ask of you. But you aren't so bad when you aren't around girls." It was true. When it was only the boys up in the dorm James was completely at ease.

"What do you want me to do? Pretend she's a guy? That might be a little hard, Moony." James ran his hand through his hair

"Don't do that." Remus scowled. If James was gonna have a chance with Lily, he couldn't go around doing stuff that he knew annoyed her.

"What?" His hand froze midway through his hair.

"Ruffling your hair. She hates it."

"Nervous habit I suppose"

"Yeah well, she thinks you do it to impress everybody."

"Heh" James's hand went uneasily to his side.

"Just relax. Lily knows how to have fun when she isn't under pressure."

"Right. So what do you think of the porn stars back there?" James suddenly became is normal carefree self. He could just change his emotions that quickly. Remus could see that the idea of Lily willingly sitting with them was settling in.

"5 galleons says she's crying by dinner."

"No way, she'll break down by the end of the train ride." They shook hands and hurried to catch Peter and Lily who had found an empty compartment.

Peter and Lily walked in silence. They didn't really have anything to talk about. Lily found she knew very little about the least popular member of the Marauders. School was a bad topic. It was well known that Peter was awful at magic. She figured anything the other Marauders were interested in would be good: girls, no; pranks, she didn't know the first thing about them; quidditch, she wasn't even sure if Peter liked it… was that all she knew they liked? They couldn't be that shallow could they. No, now she remembered, they were interested in Animagi. The year before, while writing a report, she had been shocked to find James' and Sirius' names in all of the books. It was surprising because she had never seen either of the boys crack a book. They had had an unnatural knowledge of them when they covered them in class, too.

She decided she should probably try to break the tension forming between her and Peter, "Er, how was your summer Peter?" It was a stupid question. She wished she could have come up with something witty, but that was the risk of not knowing people well.

He looked at her a little startled, but responded, "Fine" anyway.

Lily sighed. Conversation was completely exhausted. No wonder few people liked to talk to him. She wished Remus would hurry up and finish talking with James so he could rescue her from Peter and his lack of social skills.

James and Remus jogged to catch up with Lily and Peter as they reached an empty compartment.

"Looks good," said James as he peered over Lily's shoulder into the compartment.

Lily looked up at him and he fought the urge to ruffle his hair. He smiled, "Ladies first."

"Why thank you, Potter." She slid into the compartment and sat down by the window. James went in second and sat diagonal from her. Peter sat next to him, and Remus came in last to sit next to Lily.

"So how was everybody's summer?" Remus inquired cheerfully. James smiled at him. Everything was going great. He hadn't lost control yet.


	5. Chapter 5: Dammit

_Well, this can't possibly get any worse_, Lily thought. The compartment had been silent for almost half an hour. Lily was staring determinedly out the window while James gazed impassively into space. _People just don't say things like that,_ she ranted in the privacy of her own thoughts. The ride had been bearable at first, but topics quickly turned sour and Lily and James had broken into an argument.

Flashback

"Why are you always so rude to me, Evans?"

"Me? Rude to you? Nooo…"

"You know you're so much prettier when you aren't pissed, but then again, you're always pissed aren't you? No one at this school is ever good enough to be around you, Miss Evans."

"This from the guy who suspends defenseless boys upside down?"

"And you always thinking you have to protect them! They never ask for your charity…"

"Or your attention!"

"Sometimes it would just be better if you didn't even exist!"

"Likewise, Potter"

End Flashback

Their sullen mood was interrupted by the door clicking open to reveal a handsome black haired boy. "Wow what'd I miss?" Sirius sauntered into the compartment and squished himself between Peter and James. He put his arms around the two and squeezed them.

James made a face, but looked relieved that someone had broken the tension. "What happened to Samantha?" He asked.

"Who?"

"Samantha, the girl that was in our compartment earlier."

"Oh, well she started talking about how she would be saving me a seat with her friends, and we would be together all the time. Started to scare me so I left."

Remus groaned, "You can't just treat girls like that! How'd she take it?"

"Meh, went off crying to her friends."

"You disgust me Padfoot."

"You only say that because it was me in there and not you, Prongsie."

Lily scowled disapprovingly at James. They were such prats. Disgusting, evil conceited jerks. She watched James squirm uncomfortably in his seat. He'd probably snogged her too. That arrogant…

"So…" started Sirius when he saw the fury in Lily's eyes. "Who's up for playing a prank on some considerably less than innocent Slytherins?"

Sirius was only making matters worse. If he kept this up, Lily would have more than enough justifiable reasons to hate him for the rest of the year. So partly to salvage his relationship to be, and partly to escape the accusing glare to his favorite fiery redhead, James did his best to detach Sirius from Lily, "Padfoot, would you accompany me to the bathroom so I can change into my robes?"

"What? Are we girls now, mate?" He pinched James cheek, "Widdle Jamesie isn't scared of the bathroom, is he?"

"Just come, Sirius!" James growled. He couldn't tell Sirius to knock it off in here, he would make a scene.

And so that was why Sirius found himself locked in a bathroom stall with James five minutes later as his friend quietly ranted about how awful this was going, and how he would never have a chance so long as he lived, and he might as well submit to his future life as a lowly hermit with no one to love his poor decrepit soul.

"And now she's gonna think even worse of me. It doesn't matter if I do this stuff with you or not Padfoot. People always think I take part."

Sirius was slightly taken aback, "I admit, mate, I wasn't paying much attention when I walked in. I didn't think. Sorry Prongs."

James sighed. Sirius really was sorry. Too bad that didn't always fix things "What's got you all stressed out lately Padfoot?"

"It's nothing… Just stuff. You think I messed up your chances of marrying Lily?"

"I think my chances of that have been irrevocably ruined since the beginning."

"Well atleast you won't be the only one alone if you don't get married." Sirius said with a fake perkiness.

"Not getting married, Sirius?" James inquired giving his friend a sideways glance as he headed toward the door.

"I'll most likely be single until the day I die."

"Well, that makes two of us." James opened the door of the bathroom to the scared face of a new first year.

"Yeah, but you've atleast found the girl. That gives you a head start," said Sirius as he followed James back to the compartment.

"Well, keep ruining the plan and you'll never be Best Man at anyone's wedding."

"Remus will get married."

"Yeah," said James as he slid open the door, "But I already called dibs on that one."

Remus gave the two a queer look as they walked in, "Uh…"

"What?" Asked James.

"Hadn't you two been going to change your robes?" Questioned Peter slowly.

James looked down to see he was still wearing his muggle clothes with his school robes clutched in his hand, "Well, shit."

The rest of the ride went by uneventfully. The Marauders chatted randomly about everything from wine and cheese to courses for the new school year. Lily occupied herself by glaring at passing trees. But when you're sitting within a yard of people, it's hard not to overhear their conversation. Which is how Lily wound up getting a full reenactment of James's summer from Sirius.

"And that's when I make this amazing shot that nails ol' Prongsie here strait in the gut, knocking him off of his broom and into some poor old witch's Whomping Willow." Sirius reenacted the fall with exaggerated accuracy while James winced.

"Poor boy got beat up so badly, he was limping for a week. Kind of embarrassing really. I couldn't take him anywhere in public. This sweet witch at Flourish and Blotts thought he was crippled. We would have gotten free ink out of her, she felt so bad, but James had to go and be all defensive."

The stories continued for the rest of the ride. Lily had to admit that some of them were pretty amusing. At times she found herself physically having to restrain herself from laughing. Once she let a snort slip and found the four boys all looking at her. But she covered it up quickly with a cough in order to maintain her dignity.

When the train arrived at Hogwarts, Lily found a carriage with some of her friends, leaving the Marauders to sit together.

"Well, Prongs, mate, could've gone worse. She could have turned you into a frog." Sirius patted his friend on the shoulder.

James shook his head and climbed into the carriage.


End file.
